US confirms 68 swine flu cases in 5 states

Wednesday

Apr 29, 2009 at 2:00 AM

NEW YORK — The global swine flu outbreak worsened Tuesday as authorities said hundreds of students at a New York school have fallen ill and federal officials said they expected to see U.S. deaths from the virus.

The Associated Press

NEW YORK — The global swine flu outbreak worsened Tuesday as authorities said hundreds of students at a New York school have fallen ill and federal officials said they expected to see U.S. deaths from the virus.

Cuba suspended flights to and from Mexico, becoming the first country to impose a travel ban to the epicenter of the epidemic.

Confirmed cases were reported for the first time as far away as New Zealand and Israel, joining the United States, Canada, Britain and Spain.

Swine flu is believed to have killed more than 150 people in Mexico, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the U.S. has 68 confirmed cases in five states, with 45 in New York, one in Ohio, one in Indiana, two in Kansas, six in Texas and 13 in California.

"I fully expect we will see deaths from this infection," said Richard Besser, acting director of the CDC.

President Barack Obama asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funds to fight the illness.

Still, U.S. officials stressed there was no need for panic and noted that flu outbreaks are quite common every year.

Scientists hope to have a key ingredient for a vaccine ready in early May, but it still will take a few months before any shots are available for the first required safety testing.

"We're about a third of the way" to that goal, said Dr. Ruben Donis of the CDC.

In Mexico City, authorities opened the national naval hospital to civilians to deal with the still-mounting wave of suspected swine flu cases. Prospective patients crowded the waiting rooms and reception areas, waiting for a chance to get treatment.

With at least 152 suspected swine flu deaths in Mexico, complaints were heard throughout the capital of 20 million that the supply of surgical masks was running out. The economic toll also spread. Officials in Mexico City said the city is losing $57 million a day amid a shutdown that includes schools and state-run theaters.

The U.S. stepped up checks of people entering the country and warned Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico.

Carnival Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line have suspended stops at Mexican ports because of concerns about swine flu. Around the world, officials hoped the outbreak would not turn into a full-fledged pandemic — an epidemic that spreads across a wide geographical area.